Tag: Job

Emotional Wellness at Work

On February 24, 2022

In Career, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight

During the pandemic caused by the Covid-19 disease, around half of US workers admitted to experiencing mental health issues. Leaders are certainly not immune to this experience amidst the challenges of running a business. However, the reality is that without a healthy and psychologically sound leader, an enterprise cannot thrive. Take some time to focus on the emotional wellness of your team.

Many people have experienced both ups and downs with emotional health and have learned to manage it better. Two critical practices used are transparency and ownership. It’s natural to focus on the good in life. However, ignoring the bad can allow stress and anxiety to build beneath the surface. Encourage your employees to express frustrations and stressful situations. Excessive negativity isn’t helpful either, but if you promote an environment where people are afraid to be anything less than positive, you might end up with employees harboring resentment.

Being Transparent

Keep your employees in the loop about developments in the company that might affect them. Pandemic effects have led many companies to downsize and change processes, and employees don’t want to learn about these things at the last minute. Your team is often more intuitive than you think–if the management is stressed, they’ll pick up on it. Rather than letting speculation and anxiety build, communicate with them. Even if you don’t have answers or details, just acknowledging that things are stressful and uncertain will help them feel heard.

Taking Ownership

The second key to keeping good mental health is taking responsibility for what goes wrong. When things go wrong, leaders are those who take ownership. As a leader, you have to own up to your mistakes and learn from them. It motivates leaders to hire people with integrity and create companies that excel by attracting and keeping talented individuals.

As a leader, inevitably, you will make decisions that don’t play out as expected. Whether you snap at an employee or make a catastrophic business decision, you must own up to your mistakes and apologize to the people affected. You set the tone of your team, so if you aren’t being honest and taking responsibility for your actions, your team probably won’t either.

These two steps will help you foster a healthy emotional environment in your workplace.

Why Recruiting Is Vital For Startups

By Nicholas Fainlight

On June 28, 2021

In Career, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate

Although the recruitment process is a challenging and demanding task for startups, it helps them get the right people for the job. The success of the business is dependent on the initial team brought on board. They also define the company’s culture as it grows and develops over the years. Below are reasons why recruiting is vital for startups.

It Helps the Employer Understand the Employment Laws

Employment laws give the employer information about employment requirements to follow when recruiting. Ignorance of these laws introduces other risks in the business that may cause a closure. If one is not sure of recruitment laws, hiring a professional recruitment team can help employers understand the process.

The Right Team is Selected

Recruitment helps the employer select the right people for specific jobs. A startup may experience challenges due to budget limitations and the need to minimize the cost. A strong team will know how to deal with them and come up with an amicable solution—finding people with the same mindset for the company helps in establishing trust with the management that no matter what happens, the team is intact and focused.

Recruitment Acts as a Marketing Strategy

A startup can sell its brand to the public through recruitment. Taking this opportunity and publicizing job opportunities and their requirements to the people shows the organization’s transparency for people to build trust. In the end, the business grows as the brand is gaining popularity.

It Provides Consistency

The recruitment process in the early stages of a business paves the way for the following recruitment. The management should have a standardized recruitment process to ensure every individual work in the company is measurable. A consistent criterion removes biases, discrimination and reduces risks for security.

It Helps Organizations Write Accurate Job Descriptions

Recruitment helps the management clearly and accurately write the job description indicating the primary and the secondary duties, qualifications, and salary range. This information makes it easy to recruit employees that fulfill the job description.

Startup recruitment is a process to ensure the business has the right team to move to the next level and become competitive in the market. Although the process may be challenging and costly, it is worth it in the end. Take time and go through the highlighted reasons why recruitment is essential and search for more online.

Tips to Launch Your Side Hustle

By Nicholas Fainlight

On February 6, 2021

In Career, Finance, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight

It seems that every year, the marketplace becomes more amenable to side hustles. With the digital revolution democratizing many industries, you can make some money on the side without quitting your day job. This ability to pad your earnings without sacrificing your main source of income represents a truly irresistible opportunity. If you’re lucky, your side project could even become more lucrative than your current job, allowing you to focus on the new venture exclusively. You never know when an entrepreneurial venture could be the start of something truly special.

Launching a side hustle is an appealing option, but it certainly isn’t easy. Keep these tips in mind to maximize your chances of success.

Make Sure You Have A Profitable Idea

Before you actually start your business, you need to make sure your idea can actually make you money. Do some market research to see if the product or service you’ll offer is really in demand. Then, do a quick analysis to determine whether you’ll be able to consistently cover your expenses.

Identify Your Potential Customer Base

Once you’ve got your general idea in place, it’s time to determine who you customers will be. If you’re planning on running a food truck, determine what sorts of people would be most interested in your food. After you’ve developed a general buyer persona, you can build your marketing strategy accordingly.

Approach Potential Clients In A Professional Manner

When starting a business from scratch, you need to be aggressive about pursuing potential clients. If you hope to be a freelance writer, for example, you can’t simply wait for companies to reach out. You’re the unknown entity, so it’s up to you to initiate contact.

Don’t Fear Failure

Nothing paralyzes a new entrepreneur like the constant fear of failure. In order for your business to succeed, you’ll need to remain an optimist through thick and thin. Only by keeping your eyes on the prize will you overcome obstacles and resist the urge to quit.

Avoid Burnout

Starting a business is a lot of work, and it can be especially taxing when you’re working another job at the same time. Give yourself plenty of time to relax, and prioritize the maintenance of a proper work/life balance.

How To Balance Profit And Purpose In Business

By Nicholas Fainlight

On January 28, 2021

In Career, Education, Finance, fitness, health, Investing, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology, Uncategorized

Entrepreneurs need to build business empires while still staying committed to their purpose. A significant number of business people struggle to commit to their purpose while still keeping their enterprises profitable. Businesses need to demonstrate their contribution to humanity while still growing their profit margins. Here are ways businesses can balance profit and purpose.

Go Green

In the past few years, many businesses have shown their commitment to adopting more sustainable production methods. No matter the size, every organization can play a role in reducing its environmental footprint. Surprisingly, the current generation prefers to buy green products. Therefore, companies that will demonstrate high sustainability credentials will gain numerous customers who want to buy green.

For instance, manufacturers can reduce carbon emissions by sourcing closer to home. When raw materials are transported for short distances, it helps cut both transport costs and carbon emissions. Besides, leaders who have a passion for conserving the environment can shift to renewable energy sources.

Find an Inspiration

Walk away from your comfort zone and start doing something new that challenges you. Learn from these things and find inspiration in them

Leverage Technology

Technology is changing every aspect of life, including how consumers interact with brands and how they buy products and services. For example, online sales have doubled in the past five years. Additionally, organizations are using machines to understand customer needs better. This means that businesses must stay on top of the latest innovations to remain competitive in their respective industries.

Share Your Success

Entrepreneurship is a murky journey characterized by ups and downs. Therefore, successive entrepreneurs should consider sharing their experiences with novice business people. When you balance profit and purpose, your impact is significant and tangible, and more consumers will want to be associated with your business.

Understand Your Purpose

Purpose goes beyond providing high-quality goods and services to consumers. It also means that your business prioritizes the common good of the community. For example, some companies such as Unilever have already developed a unique living plan to track their progress of minimizing their environmental footprint. Business leaders should devote time to learn about societal impact and how to improve it.

To change business operations to meet new expectations requires exceptional and visionary leadership. In today’s versatile business world, leaders who will adopt agility will be in a better position to achieve long-term success.

Social Media Marketing Through Instagram

By Nicholas Fainlight

On September 16, 2020

In Career, Investing, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology

Marketers using TikTok should consider switching to Instagram. The social media platform now offers Instagram Reels, which has many of TikTok’s features, including a way for new creators to find a following. Instagram’s Explore algorithm makes it notoriously difficult for marketers to have their Stories found. Brands can share their Reel to their Stories and their Profile’s Reels tab. Instagram users will also see Reels on their Explore page.

TikTok may not be around for long. A potential ban is leaving TikTok influencers asking their fans to follow them on other platforms. President Trump already signed an executive order barring U.S. companies from doing business with TikTok after Sept. 20th. American companies that violate the order could face a fine of up to a $1 million fine.

Marketers can get on Instagram Reels now and take advantage of new Instagram users influencers bring and the already one billion active users each month. Reportedly, Mark Zuckerberg is trying to lure popular TikTok influencers to switch to Instagram, which Facebook owns. Facebook has deep pockets too, deeper than TikTok, which is trying to keep influencers with incentives. Facebook’s rumored offer of bankrolling video clip production for influential creators to post their content exclusively on Instagram reels will be hard for TikTok to beat.

Only 28 percent of marketing professionals use Instagram. Expect this number to rise once Instagram Reels catches on as a way to reach a young audience with 15-second video clips with catchy music. Businesses have a chance to show off their fun side with authentic content on Reels. Humanizing a brand is an ideal way to build genuine relationships with their fan base. Features like Instagram Reels let brands showcase their personality.

Other marketers are considering educational content for their Reels. As Reels were released early in certain countries, brands have been sharing recipes and providing helpful tips. Sephora France already has popular makeup tutorial Reels. They encourage engagement by asking viewers about their favorite eye shadow color.

Marketers who start using Instagram Reels early on will find the competition is low in the U.S. market. With many influencers jumping ship from TikTok to Instagram Reels, it’s a great time for brands to find influencers to develop branded Instagram Reels.

Tips To Help You Be Better At Networking

By Nicholas Fainlight

On August 18, 2020

In Career, Education, Finance, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate

Whether you’re running a business or trying to work your way up the corporate ladder, networking is something you’re likely going to have to engage with at some point in your career. Networking helps us meet other likeminded individuals that can help us strengthen our businesses and careers as well as learn more about success and failure. Of course, networking isn’t always easy. Most people aren’t fond of walking into a room and introducing themselves to a bunch of people they’ve never met, especially if they’re all intelligent and skilled business professionals. If you’re someone who struggles with networking or are going to your first networking event, here are a few tips to make things a little easier.

Be Informal

While you might have the urge to be as professional as possible, it’s important that you show potential customers and business partners the human side of you. If you be yourself, it’s more likely that a person will enjoy your company and then want to work with you. Of course, that isn’t to say you can’t talk about your career or business – sometimes people will decide to ask you about it and it’s perfectly acceptable to have that conversation. You just want to be sure you don’t come off too strong and that it isn’t all business, otherwise they may think you’re just trying to get a new customer.

Don’t Have A One Way Conversation

One of the most important aspects of networking is actually having a conversation – that means letting the other person talk while you listen intently, and then responding properly. While you may feel the urge to talk their ear off about you and your business, it’s important that conversations aren’t one way otherwise they may lose interest in you quickly. It’s also important that you don’t let them be the only one talking. Conversational skills are extremely important when it comes to networking, and if you’re shy then you won’t stand out.

Follow Up

If you feel that you’ve had a good time networking with someone, it’s important that the relationship doesn’t end when the conversation does. Be sure to ask them for their contact info. If they give it to you, it likely means that they also enjoyed your time together and chances are they’d be willing to get together again, which could lead to potential partnerships down the line. Everyone likes to connect differently, so make sure you’re available in various forms – phone numbers, emails, LinkedIn pages, Twitter – it’ll be different for everyone. Once you have this information, be sure to reach out the next time there’s a similar event to let them know that you’ll be there and that you should connect.

Tips For Building A Great Resume

By Nicholas Fainlight

On July 18, 2020

In Career, Education, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate

Having a stellar resume is one of the most important aspects of applying for jobs. The hard part is actually building one. A lot goes into building a resume and you’ll likely hear many different things about what makes one great. It’s important that your resume is easy to read and that it highlights your relevant experience in a clear and concise manner. You might even want to seek out professional help when building or updating your resume to make sure it’s up to snuff and gets past the computers that screen resumes and into the hands of a hiring manager. Read on for a few tips to help you build the best resume you can.

Research Examples For Your Industry

A great place to start when building your resume is researching examples of great resumes that other people in your industry have used. This can give you a good feel for the type of experience you want to include and how you want to describe the roles or projects you’ve worked on previously. When looking at examples, you’ll notice that the best examples tend to be brief and simple to read for anyone looking at them. You’ll also notice that they tend to include numbers. Numbers are good because they help an employer get a better sense of the value you can bring to the position you’re applying for.

Put The Most Important Information First

Depending on how long you’ve been working, you may have a lot of relevant experience to put onto your resume. While you may want to share all of this experience with potential employers, it can end up causing your resume to be bloated with information which may ultimately lead to a hiring manager passing on it. You want to make sure that the information on your resume is only the most relevant information to the role you’re applying for and that you put that information at the top of your resume so it sticks out to employers. If you’re applying for a customer service role in an office, you likely don’t need to include that warehouse job you did in college.

Proofread

This might seem obvious but you’d be surprised how often employers receive resumes that have grammatical errors and the like in them. Before sending your resume off, be sure to proofread it several times. You should go through it yourself but you can also use various proofreading programs and tools on the internet. Ultimately, it may be best to have a few colleagues or friends who you trust to take a look at it and see what they say. An outside source is more likely to catch mistakes and unnecessary information than the person who worked on it.